Golden Rules Of Crisis PR
There has always been golden rules for crisis management
, but an up to date plan cannot ignore the growing impact of social media.
"Be honest, be quick" has always been the experts' mantra for a full blown crisis. Get the facts to media before they start making assumptions and you gain control of the issue affecting your reputation.
The media side of any crisis has always been relatively straightforward. Hit the titles offline, online, broadcast and trade which speak directly to your key stakeholders, those that currently trust your organisation and your brand.
Got a popular product on shelf that threatens consumer safety? You have to hit the national media, even if this means buying your way in via adverts.
Trade focused issue relating to your finances or rumoured redundancies? Keep it to your sector media if possible but don't forget to ensure that employees are fully briefed on the facts.
No organisation is entirely leak-proof so make sure that this doesn't become industry Chinese whispers by playing the facts too close to your chest.
But social media has opened up a whole new channel. One which isn't going to stay quiet, even if your brand or organisation doesn't have a Twitter account or a Facebook page.
Rumours can spread like wildfire in real-time via platforms such as Twitter, which has already established itself as a powerful influence, even if it can get a bit knee jerk' as people spread what is often little more than idle gossip just ask Steven Gerrard.
And that's where the problem lies for many businesses. If social media is not a platform where a company is already engaged, it's easy to dismiss it as a place where people tell each other about what they had for lunch or share photos of their latest night out.
Big mistake. In many ways, platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Posterous, Tumblr and social news sharing sites such as Digg and Reddit are the new Achilles heel for any business handling a crisis.
Dismiss or ignore them at your peril. Because while you may be handling every other aspect of your crisis to perfection, thousands of people may be speculating about it online.
And their opinions count. They are your customers and your potential customers, the new guardians of your corporate reputation, sharing information which will be monitored and picked up by traditional media, often presented as fact or a thinly veiled here is what people are saying on Twitter' article.
So what can you do? Get involved, make sure you are monitoring these platforms even if you don't use them to promote your brand. Be prepared to step in and post accurate information, even if this means exposing your organisation to direct questions.
You don't have to respond to everyone directly. If you can direct people to your own website or even to news stories which are accurate, you are engaging in a
conversation which concerns your business.
Golden Rules Of Crisis PR
By: Lee Laz
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